Canadian Compost Facility at the Top of the Heap

Hamilton, Ontario, is home to an impressive, one-of-a-kind compost facility and biowaste-management program.

Hamilton, Ontario, is home to an impressive, one-of-a-kind compost facility and biowaste-management program.

In 2001, the city faced a critical situation: available landfill space in the region was virtually nonexistent. To combat the program, the 504,000-resident city began looking at solutions that would help them meet the formidable goal of reaching a 65% diversion rate by 2008. They decided upon a central composting facility (CCF), but planning, designing, and constructing one would be a highly complex task.

By 2004, the city had selected a site and approved the design-build-operate contract. To ensure that the process flowed smoothly, all parties involved hammered out and signed a statement declaring their common mission; to create a state-of-the-art facility that would serve as the cornerstone of the city's waste-diversion goal.

The CCF opened for business in 2006. Carts and mini bins were distributed to residents and businesses for green waste collection, and the CCF—with a process capacity of 66,139 tons (99,208 peak) per year—is running smoothly.